


Lullaby

by Emfoofoo



Category: My Time At Portia (Video Game)
Genre: Multi, Nightmares, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-11
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:27:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25843549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emfoofoo/pseuds/Emfoofoo
Summary: Even after retreating to Portia from his war-stricken home, Aadit still suffers from nightmares and PTSD attacks. This is the first one he's had in his newlywed's workshop. It's up to the builder to calm him down and get him back to sleep.
Relationships: Aadit & Builder (My Time At Portia), Aadit/Builder (My Time At Portia)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 12





	Lullaby

The pale moonlight entered the bedroom through the thin cracks of the blinds of the windows, illuminating the floorboards. It seemed to be a calm spring night in Portia, like any other. You were snuggled up under the covers beside your husband Aadit in bed, sleeping comfortably. On the other hand, your husband was not having any sort of sweet dreams. He was experiencing another nightmare of his time on the borders of Duvos and Ethea. 

Gunshots. Innocents screaming out in pain. Pools of blood from his fallen allies spilling out onto the ground, filling in the cracks of the dirt beneath his feet. He couldn’t take it anymore. He tossed and turned in his sleep. A cold sweat dampened his face and hands. He shut his eyes tighter, clenched his teeth and grasped at the sheets desperately wanting out of this nightmare. 

Finally, he shot up from his sleep and let out a pained scream. Petrified with fear, his hands trembled. His eyes widened and stared into the wall ahead of him, prepared for something to come crashing through the wall to kill him. He clenched the sheets tighter, ignoring the pain in his hands as his knuckles grew whiter. 

Upon hearing the commotion beside you, your eyes shot open and your mind began racing. You knew Aadit had a history of nightmares and PTSD attacks, but this was the first time you experienced it first hand. You slowly arose from your sleep, careful not to disturb your husband. Looking over, you noticed the moonlight shining off of his sweaty face, lighting up the larger drops of sweat that ran down his forehead. You noticed how tense he was, especially how tightly his hands were gripping the covers. 

“Aadit...” 

His mouth sputtered, unable to form words to make a response, as if he had forgotten how to speak. His eyes were still dead set on the wall ahead of him. He wanted to be prepared for anything that was about to burst through the walls and attack him or his spouse, but at the same time he was paralyzed in fear. Fearful of the fact that he could fail to save his own life, or even worse, the life of his one and only true love.

“Aadit... can I hold you?” you asked quietly.

Suddenly, you saw his hands release from the covers. You barely caught him as his body abruptly collapsed into your arms. He buried his face into the crook of your neck, taking sharp inhales and exhales of breath. His chest expanded and contracted rapidly as he gasped for air. You felt his hands tremble on your back as he desperately tried to hold onto you to keep you safe. The cold sweat from his face started fo absorb into the sleeve of your shirt. Instinctively, you wrapped your arms around Aadit and gently stroked his back up and down, attempting to soothe him. 

“I know this nightmare feels real, but it’s not. I promise you. I will keep you safe.”

Aadit’s gasps for air began to escalate - you could tell he was beginning to hyperventilate.

“Easy now. Deep breaths, Aadit. In........ and out.” you instructed calmly. 

It took a few attempts, but eventually he was able to catch his breath. His heart was still racing and his hands were still shaking, but you knew you were doing the right things helping him through this attack. Aadit began sobbing helplessly into your shirt, getting it even more damp than before. You began stroking his back and his hair once again to help calm him down. It made your heart sink to hear him cry. Understanding how to handle a panic attack was a new thing for you, and you wished you could do more to help. 

It took several minutes, but in time Aadit was able to overcome his attack. His breathing returned to a regular pace, and he stopped crying. Slowly, he raised his head from your shoulder and looked at you. His eyelids were puffy and damp from crying - not to mention the entire duration of the attack exhausted him. 

“I’m so sorry... I didn’t mean to keep you up this late...” Aadit apologized, looking away from you sheepishly. You raised your left hand up to cradle his face to console him. 

“It’s alright darling. You know I’m always here for you, and that you’re safe here with me. I just hope that I did the right thing in helping you tonight.”

He cocked his head, leaning further into your hand cradling his face. 

“You did wonderfully my dear. Everything you did helped me to get through my attack... I haven’t had anyone be able to do that for me, ever since my mom started singing me to sleep to help get me through the nightmares and attacks. Dawa would just yell at me until I would stop. But that did more harm than good...” he seethed in annoyance.

He shook off his frustration, reminded that he no longer had to deal with sharing a house with Dawa.

“I really can’t thank you enough, my dear. I almost feel like you’re burdened by my sleepless nights. I know you have lots of work to do during the next day, so I feel bad that I’m stealing that sleep away from you...”

“Aadit, really. It’s okay. You’re not a burden at all. Seeing you during an attack makes my heart sink.... It’s only fair of me to take time out of my night to try and help you.” you stated reassuringly.

He looked over at you again and let out a small, heartfelt smile out of the corner of his mouth, expressing his gratitude. 

Eventually, you both laid back down and got yourselves tucked back into bed to sleep for the night. Back before you were married, or even dating for that matter, you recalled a favor Aadit asked you back when he was living on the tree farm with Dawa. He asked you to make a music box for him in an attempt to help him sleep and prevent his nightmares. Against the odds, you both discovered that the melody the music box was playing just happened to be one of the melodies that Aadit’s mother would sing to soothe him. As you were working on the project, the melody got stuck in your head as you continued to tweak and test the music box to make sure it functioned. By far, you were no expert in singing, but you thought that maybe at least humming the melody would help get Aadit back to sleep again. 

You embraced Aadit, holding him close to your chest. With your other arm, you began stroking his hair again, working from the top of his scalp down to the hair behind his ear, and finally down to his beard. After gathering enough confidence, you began to hum the melody. Aadit immediately recognized the tune and buried his face deeper into your chest, like a timid young child. His arms embraced you tighter, with no sign of ever letting you go. Eventually, after the humming the tune enough, you gathered up enough courage to begin singing the lyrics. While you forgot some of the words and most of your notes were off-key, Aadit didn’t seem to mind. He loved the effort you were putting in to soothe him. 

Alas, the two of you ended up sleeping comfortably for the rest of the night. The next morning, Aadit woke up first, still snuggled up next to you. Instead of getting up right away, he stayed awake in bed and watched you sleep. Softly, he raised his hand up to your face and began to stoke away the loose hair that was in your face. He cautiously planted a soft kiss on your forehead, in an attempt to not to disturb your sleep.

“I love you, my dearest. Thank you for everything last night.” he cooed.


End file.
